Sun.’s Devo - Compassion

Read: Deuteronomy 23:1-25:19; Luke 10:13-37; Psalm 75:1-10; Proverbs 12:12-14 Castration and illegitimacy all have to do with perversion - the wrong version of God’s intention for mankind. A person born illegitimately was not to enter the assembly of the Lord for 10 generations. Ammonites and Moabites could not enter for ten generations because they had hired Balaam to curse Israel. The Edomites and Egyptians could enter after three generations because the Edomites were their relatives and the Egyptians were just about their relatives since they lived among them for so long. The camp was to be kept clean from any waste that would cause shame since God walked among them to protecte them and to defeat their enemies. Refugees who came to them for safety must be allowed to stay and live wherever they chose. Women who were prostitutes at the pagan shrines were not allowed among them or any earring from their ears was allowed to be brought to the Lord. Earrings showed who you belonged to. Israelites could not charge interest on a loan to another Israelite. They were to keep all their vows, especially those made to the Lord. People were not to take advantage of one another. If a man married a woman who did not please him, he was to write her a document of divorce and make the divorce legal. He was not allowed to remarry her if she had married another man in between. That would be detestable to the Lord. A newly married man could not enter the army until he had enjoyed a year with his wife. When taking a surety for a loan, you were not to take the means of that person’s way of making a living from him or keep his cloak overnight since that would be his source of heat. Those who kidnapped and trafficked other Israelites must die. They were to follow the instructions for leprosy by the book. The poor and destitute should be payed daily for their wages since they lived day-to-day. Parents should not be held responsible for their children’s sins. Foreigners, orphans, and widows should be treated with respect and compassion. They were reminded that they were all once in their shoes in Egypt. They were to remember the poor when they harvested their crops. They were not to go back over their crops a second time but leave any left or dropped for the poor. (Remember Ruth.) If a man was accused rightly of a crime he was to get up to 39 lashes but never 40. Fourty means judged completely. The thirty-nine means that he has a chance to change. If two brothers live together on the same property and one of them dies without an heir, the living brother should marry his brother’s widow and have a son for the dead brother’s name. If he refuses to marry her then she must go to the elders and tell them. The man would then be brought before them and have a chance to do the right thing. If he still refused then she was to take off his sandal and spit in his face and declare that he was the man who refused to provide for his brother with children. His reputation would always be the one whose sandal was removed. (This happened in the story of Tamar and Judah.) They were to be totally honest with each other in business deals, and lastly, they must deal with the Amalekites who attacked them when they left Egypt. Their memory must be removed from the earth. (It was Solomon who would do this.) In Luke Jesus was talking about towns that would not accept his teachings. He cursed towns which had rejected him and his teaching: Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. He reminded them that the people who rejected them were rejecting Jesus and God. He also reminded them that he saw Satan fall like lighting. Satan has no more power - his power has now been given to Jesus’ followers. We have the power to curse Satan and all his evil spirits because our names are recorded in heaven. Jesus gives us the ability to see with spiritual eyes and hear with spiritual ears. One day and religious expert asked Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life. He gave Jesus the first and second commandments. The man wanting to justify himself asked who his neighbor was. Jesus told the story of the good Samaritan. It flew in the faces of the religious hierarchy since they were the first two to walk by the hurt man on the road. It was the Gentile who stopped and took care of the hurt Israelite. He was the one who showed mercy. Lord, help us not to be caught up in doing the right thing instead of being the right thing. May we honor you and others with your love and compassion.